Mal
Mal Bertha is the main protagonist from the Disney Channel film Descendants. She is the daughter of Maleficent. A natural-born leader, Mal takes charge of carrying out her mother's evil plan to steal the Fairy Godmother's magic wand and enjoys drawing and casting spells (but only if needed). Background Personality Mal is a sneaky, smart, and ruthless girl who is a natural leader and pretty good at drawing. Though she is compassionate to a degree she is also vengeful and doesn't forgive others easily. She is artistic and has a knack for casting spells, but only if needed. As the daughter of Maleficent, she wants to be like her mother: pure evil. Yet whenever she tries to prove herself to her mother, she often disappoints her instead. But she does enjoy coming up with evil plans and is the most feared at her previous school because of her reputation. She isn't fond of beautiful surroundings or anything pink and finds them to be horrid, but she does sometimes wonder about how life would be off the island. Despite this, she is not necessarily immoral; she is just misguided. Her "mean girl" facade is an act because she does not want to be seen as weak in her mother's eyes; being one is the only way she is respected by Maleficent, who never cared about Mal. Ben is the only person who saw through Mal's act (including herself), and saw her for who she was, a good person and he is the only one who know's Mal's middle name. She also tends to be overly-sarcastic and, according to Wicked World, has a strange love of mud. Physical Appearance Mal is described as a girl with dark purple hair with highlights of lighter shades of purple that is curly and reaches a little bit over her shoulders. She has green eyes with "flecks of gold" and is of medium height. She mostly wears purple and shades of green during the movie. At Ben's coronation, she wears a lavender dress that is short on the front but long and regal looking on the back. Mal had her hair tied up in a top knot. According to Descendants: Isle of the Lost, she has a dragon-shaped marking on her arm, the symbol of Maleficent. Powers & Abilities Mal is trained in dark forms of magic, courtesy of her mother. By Descendants: Wicked World however, she became somewhat incompetent with her magic despite being skilled in the film. * Magic: Mal has the ability to manipulate magic to her will. She has both good magic and dark magic. Her powers descended from her mother. ** Spell Casting: 'Mal can cast spells that she thinks of or that comes from her mothers Spell Book. Appearances Descendants Mal is first seen spray painting a brick city wall. Then, she and her friends wreak havoc across an area of the Isle of the Lost. ''("Rotten to the Core") After taking a lollipop from a toddler, her mother Maleficent comes. She gives the news that the four have been chosen to attend Auradon Prep. She gives the four a task to steal the Fairy Godmother's wand, and hands over her spellbook to Mal. When they arrive at Auradon Prep, they are welcomed by the Fairy Godmother and Prince Ben, who made the decree that they be given a chance to live among them. Audrey, Ben's girlfriend and the daughter of Aurora, is unwelcoming and rude. Mal and Audrey exchange awkward looks, before Audrey takes Ben away. thumb|left|250px|Mal and Evie enter their dorm. Mal and Evie become roommates to a room Mal finds "gross," but what Evie secretly loves. At night, the two girls enter Jay and Carlos' dorm while Jay and Carlos were enjoying they almost forgot what they are here for then Mal tells that it is their one chance to prove their parents that they are evil. Then they went to the museum after knowing where the wand is being held. Mal successfully puts the guard into a deep sleep, and they go look for the wand. They enter a room, which contains statues of their parents; Mal stays behind, having a vision of her mother encouraging her to go through with the plan to steal the wand. ("Evil Like Me") They find the wand, but Jay accidentally sets off the alarm when trying to take the wand. They narrowly escape, thanks to Carlos reporting the alarm as a malfunction. The next day, they have school; Mal aces Remedial Goodness as it's a no-brainer what answer good guys would choose. Jay and Carlos are in the Tourney team, and Evie is asked out by Chad Charming. Mal befriends Jane, Fairy Godmother's daughter, to get the wand; she plays on Jane's insecurities about being pretty by making her hair more beautiful. Lonnie, Mulan's daughter, asks Mal to change her hair to a cool style likes her; Mal reluctantly agrees, since Lonnie will pay $50 and Evie needs more material for sewing her outfits. Finding out the wand will be used in the coronation, Mal hatches a plan to become Ben's girlfriend to get close to the wand; only his folks and girlfriend get to stand up front. She begins baking a love spell into a batch of cookies; however, she finds that a tear of true sadness is the only ingredient missing. Lonnie bothers her (other girls want Mal to change their hair as well), and Mal reveals that the parents on the Isle of the Lost never showed them anything like love before when Lonnie remembers when her mother made her cookies whenever she was sad. Lonnie cries for them; Mal pretends to kindly wipe it away, flicking the tear into the cookie batter. The next day, Mal uses psychology to trick Ben into eating the cookie, by making him think he doesn't trust a treat offered by the child of a villain.To Mal's surprise, the love potion works a little too well, as Ben breaks out into a song about his love for her after winning the Tourney game with Jay and Carlos' help. She readily accepts his request to attend the coronation with him, but feels a bit sorry for Audrey, who is shallow compared to her and choose Chad Charming (a manipulative jerk) as a rebound boyfriend. thumb|left|250px|"If Only." Mal goes on a date with Ben to the Enchanted Lake, where he they find they have some things in common, such as embarrassing middle names, and the status of their parents; Ben explains that while he has the "poster parents of goodness" and her mother is Mistress of Evil, they're not automatically like them as they get to choose who they get to be. She is then taken aback when Ben tells her that he can see goodness when he looks into her eyes, not evil. While Ben takes a swim, Mal begins feeling conflicted since she's falling in love. When Ben doesn't surface, Mal attempts to save him despite not being able to swim; Ben saves her, albeit a bit confused. Mal points out that there's a barrier around the Isle of the Lost, preventing swimming. When asked if she loves him, Mal says that she doesn't know what it feels like to love; Ben says he might be able to teach her. Prior to Family Day, Mal and her friends are allowed to video chat with their parents. Hearing her mother's subtle message, Mal decides that they're all goners if they don't succeed. Come Family Day, Mal attends with her friends and is introduced to King Beast and Queen Belle by Ben as his new girlfriend; the experience is mutually uncomfortable for three of them. Playing a game of croquet prior to lunch, Mal meets Audrey's grandmother, Queen Leah, who initially mistakes her for her mother in shock. Ben explains the situation, but Queen Leah is furious at the very memory of her daughter needing to be raised by fairies due to Maleficent's curse. Feeling sorry for the misery her mother caused, Mal attempts to apologize, but is stopped by Chad Charming, who has never trusted Mal or her friends. After Evie knocks out Chad with a sleeping potion, Mal is left feeling hurt and confused more than ever; Ben attempts comforting her prior to leaving to prep for the coronation the next day. Jane and Audrey make fun of Mal, who snaps back at them by undoing the makeover she gave Jane's hair; she threatens to do worse, telling her friends she's looking forward to the coronation. The following day, she rides with Ben in a carriage to the coronation. He eats a cupcake with the antidote to the love potion in it too early; however, she learns Ben has been free of the spell since their first date, thanks to the Enchanted Lake washing away the spell. Wondering if Ben had been had been faking his affection for her, Mal is left happily surprised he entrusts his signet ring to her. This however, causes her to begin questioning if she should give up this happiness love has brought her, in order to fulfill her mothers' evil desires. thumb|250px|Mal chooses good. During the coronation, Jane snatches the wand to give herself a makeover; however, the magic backfires and makes a hole in the barrier surrounding the Isle of the Lost. Mal takes the wand, and after encouragement from Ben, decides to choose good as it's brought her more happiness than evil ever did and states the fact that she wants to live here in Auradon because it brings her happiness. Her friends agree, just as Maleficent arrives to take the wand. With everyone but herself and her friends frozen in time by her mother, Mal finally stands up to Maleficent, saying she's never considered what her daughter's wanted. Using a spell, Mal shrinks her mother down to a small lizard, which is equal to the love in her heart. Fairy Godmother unfreezes time, freeing everyone. Mal shares moment with Ben, while telling Fairy Godmother not to be too hard on Jane since it was her fault for putting the ideas in her head. With her mother locked up, Mal decides to enjoy the after party with her friends. Mal dances with Ben to Set it Off. She then narrates "You didn't think that was end of the story, did you?" while giving a smirk to the audience as her eyes glowed green. ''Descendants: Wicked World Mal returns in the animated short series ''Descendants: Wicked World, voiced by Dove Cameron who also portrayed her in the live-action film. In the series, Mal continues to attend Auradon Prep and is trying her best to be a good person. However, her good intentions often backfire, resulting in a lot of people sending online posts about her mishaps, promoting everyone to think she's still up to her old ways. In addition, she's shown to be somewhat more incompetent (or rather clumsy) with her magic. Printed material ''Descendants: Isle of the Lost In the prelude novel, Mal is introduced as the daughter of Maleficent, the worst of the villains. Mal was born and raised in the Isle of the Lost, along with her mother, best friends and their parents. One evening, Mal dreams of being in Auradon on the edge of a beautiful lake with the soon-to-be-king Ben (to whom she did not know). She doesn't always do so well in school, except for Advance Evil Schemes and Nasty Tricks taught by Lady Tremaine. For her Ultimate Project she chose to humiliate Evie in which she fails to do. However, when Diablo was reanimated and informs Maleficent of the return of magic to the fairy's staff, Maleficent instructs Mal to retrieve it to prove herself evil. Mal convinces Jay, Evie and Carlos to get the staff back from the Forbidden Fortress in "Nowhere", an area near the Isle. She saves Evie from getting cursed by the staff at the cost of the the staff losing its magic once returned to Maleficent. Afterwards, the four teens become friends. ''Descendants: Return to the Isle of the Lost (Upcoming) In the sequel, Return to the Isle of the Lost, Mal, Evie, Jay, and Carlos find themselves right where we left them in the movie. Enjoying everything that Auradon has to offer. In the Library, she then tells Ben about putting a fake nose on Pin. Meanwhile, she now has great friends, interesting classes, a world filled with hope instead of dreary villains and no future. They originally expected to hate it, but as we all know, they not only decided to stay, but to find their inner goodness. (And when there’s handsome princes, Tourney matches, puppies, and spontaneous musical numbers galore, who can really blame them?) But when they receive a mysterious invitation to return to the Isle of the Lost, Mal, Evie, Carlos, and Jay find themselves falling into their old habits. Evil spells, stealing, and breaking the rules comes naturally to them, it’s not really their fault, it’s how they were raised! In addition to becoming Rotten to the Core once again, they discover a dark mystery at the Isle’s core, and must combine all their talents, both good and bad, in order to save the Kingdom. Relationships '''Ben (see Mal and Ben): He seemed to be attracted to her the first moment they met. Mal, nonetheless, was more focused on getting the wand and once told Jane and Evie that she thought love and getting a boyfriend were stupid and that she didn't need them. He frequently tried to approach and be friendly with the VKs, but was most friendly with Mal. Interesting, the two both had a dream about the other before ever meeting each other. When Mal learned Ben his family and his girlfriend get to be near the wand, she immediately tried to entice Ben by making a love potion cookie and giving it to him. When he ate it, it had an extremely strong effect and he proclaimed his love for her after the Tourney team victory. She accepted and when the two went on their first date. During the date, the two got to know each other well and Ben saw the goodness in Mal and advised her they didn't have to follow their parent's footsteps. Mal even began questioning whether to follow the goodness inside her or follow her mother's footsteps and when he seemed to be drowning, she risked drowning herself to save him since she didn't know how to swim. While the potion did washed off Ben, he still loved her and decided to remain in a relationship with her. Mal thought since their parents would kill them if she and the VKs didn't go through with the plan, she figured the least she could do was erase his feelings. However, during the parade, she learned he knew he was under a potion which washed off, but still loved her. She admitted she was happy being with him and being at Auradon and decided to stay and be good. The two have since remained a couple. In Wicked World, the two are shown to flirt, with Mal often complimenting on how cute he is and being impressed when he lied to Jay, while Ben encourages her to do her best and being a good person. The two had shared a romantic dance in Episode 16 and when he was kidnapped, she was extremely worried and happy upon learning he was safe. The two are still in a relationship in Return to Isle of the Lost. Maleficent: She has always wanted to make her mother proud though her mother's expectations were too high and her mother never thought she was evil enough, often lecturing about how evil she was in the past and often comparing Mal to herself and putting her down and putting severe pressure on her. Mal was the most determined of the VKs to follow her parent's footsteps especially since her mother was the most powerful. She tried looking to her mother and asking her what to do (Evil Like Me) and believed correctly her mother would punish her should she fail. Lonnie also asked Mal if her mother ever made her cookies since she thought villains loved their kids too, causing Mal to become depressed while claiming her mother did love her but seemed reluctant in her words. However, Ben assured her that she doesn't have to follow her mother's path and that she had goodness in her and should follow her own heart. When her mother and the other parents talked to the VK via computer chat, Maleficent pressured Mal saying to hurry up implicitly leading to arguments among the parents and pressure and anxiety for the VKs. When Maleficent saw Mal had "tricked" Ben in order to get close to the wand she seemed proud. She was upset when Mal chose good and decided to punish her, but Mal had stood up to herself and turned her into a gecko (since she turned her into the size of the love of her heart). Despite this, she told the guards to be careful when escorting her away because she was still her mother and she still loved her. Evie: When the two were younger, the two did not get along. Evie didn't invite her to her birthday parties so Mal played pranks on her. However, after saving Evie from being cursed as they, along with Carlos and Jay, went to get a staff from the Forbidden Fortress, they became friends. Mal seemed to be in charge and bossed Evie around (similar to how Audrey treated Jane) the two still got along. She told Evie that having a boyfriend was stupid especailly since her own boyfriend, Chad, was making her do his homework for him. When Chad broke her heart after using her, Mal comforted he saying Chad was unlucky for going with Audrey when Evie was prettier smarter and kinder. When Mal needed help getting ready for her date with Ben, Evie volunteered to help her. When Mal decided to erase Ben's feelings, Evie gave her comfort. The two had both decided to be good, stayed at Aurodan, and defeated Maleficent alongside Carlos and Jay. The two are best friends and like sisters who stand by each other and often hang out with each other. Carlos: While the two don't have much interaction, they still got along. she often had to remind him to stay focused such as when he was distracted by video games when they were discussing how to steal the wand. She cheered for him when he and Jay won the Tourney competition and when she had to choose between good and evil she managed to convince Carlos to join the good side, telling him he didn't have to worry about being punished by their parents and that they would stick together as friends. Jay: While the two don't have much interaction, they still got along. She often had to remind him to stay focused. She was annoyed by his impulsiveness in trying to get the wand and when he considered staying in Aurodan since it was such a nice place. she cheered for him when he and Carlos won the Tourney competition and when she had to choose between good and evil she managed to convince Jay to join the good side. Audrey: The two were the children of Maleficent and Sleeping Beauty, so there was tension from their family history when the two first met. Audrey thought little of Mal, often belittling her in her presence and during family day Audrey told her grandmother to stay away from her. After the incident, she began publicly and loudly ridiculing Mal but became scared when Mal threatened to use magic on them. However at the end of the film the two bow to each other in respect. However, in Wicked world, Mal tends to get in trouble with Audrey because Audrey gets caught in the crossfire of Mal's magical antics, even if by accident. When CJ committed a series of acts and framed Mal and the VKs for it, she became suspicious of them, usually Mal or Freddie and confronted her when Ben disappeared being the first to call her out but was proven wrong and ultimately the two put the issue of distrust under the bridge. Jane: Initially Jane was scared of the VKs but since she was the fairy godmother's daughter Mal tried to befriend her to get to the wand. She knew Jane lacked self esteem and used that to her advantage, changing her hair to be prettier and subtly telling her her mother didn't care about her and that she should try to convince her mother to use the wand to make her prettier. Jane took the advice and befriended Mal. However, after the fiasco at Family Day between the VKs and Chad, Jane ridiculed Mal only for Mal to retaliate by changing her hair back to its ugly form, causing her to be ostracized. Jane was so humiliated she tried to take her mother's wand to make herself pretty but when she was going to get punished for her action by her mother, Mal assured her mother it was her fault Jane did what she did since Mal was the one who put the ideas in her head and the two became friends. However, in Wicked World, when bad things happened and Mal was framed by CJ, she blamed Mal and was quick to turn on her. When CJ revealed she did everything, Jane befriended Mal once again. Lonnie: Lonnie was acting nice toward Mal and asked for her to do her hair. Later she saw her, Evie, Carlos and Jay baking some cookies and offered to help giving the chocolate chips. She then asked if her parents made any since she figured the VKs' parents must love their children, with Mal despondently stating things were different for them. She immediately regretted her actions and cried apologetically. After the family day incident, while she was not mean to Mal she did begin avoiding her especially since she worried Mal may take away her hair like she did with Jane. However, by the end of the film the two seemed to have become friends again In episode 11, she and Evie helped design her outfit for the hip hop stage performance. when things went bad and Ben went missing, Lonnie was the only AK not to accuse her (though she was busy manning the DJ station). Jordan: Jordan thought Mal stole her lamp, so she didn't like her at first, but the two seem to have become friends. She did accused Mal of being back to her evil ways in Episode 17, but was proven wrong and the two are friends again. Ally: She didn't trust Mal, since she was a VK and things started happening (CJ did them, but framed Mal). However, when she learns the truth, they become friends again. Freddie: The two knew each other when they were younger and she tried to warn Ben that she was bad news. Despite this, the two managed to get along. When Freddie revealed she was working with CJ to cause havoc around Auradon, she chose to stay in Auradon and Mal forgave her, saying if she didn't forgive everyone with a maniacal scheme she wouldn't have any. CJ: She knew him from her past and knew she was trouble. CJ had framed Mal for all the bad things she did and tried to team up with her to take over Auradon. When she refused, CJ accused her of being soft. When she escaped, Mal decided to let her go, saying enjoying the dance was more important than catching her. Chad: She had little interaction with him but she disliked him for using Evie, telling Evie he wasn't worth it and felt sorry for him going with Audrey, since Evie was much smarter prettier and kinder. Doug: There was little interaction between the two, though the two seem to be friendly with each other in relation to Evie. Gallery Trivia *Her name means "bad" in Spanish, French and Portuguese. *Dove Cameron wore a wig during filming. *In a scene where Mal tries to save Ben from drowning, it is revealed that she can't swim. *At the time of the film, she is sixteen years old. *Mal has the most common sense out of her friends, as she got every answer in Remedial Goodness right by picking the answer that sounded the least fun for villains. *During her picnic with Ben, she is shown to develop a fondness with strawberries *She loves the color purple though in episode 13 Evie describes it more as an aubergine while Freddie disagrees saying it looks like eggplant and Audrey states it looks more like amethyst. *Mal's main colors are purple, symbolizing power, which is a recurring theme with her mother Maleficent. *In the film, it's revealed that her middle name is "Bertha." In the Spanish version, her middle name is "Igna." Maligna is a wordplay for Malign. *During the film, whenever Mal is around Ben, her hair seems shorter and lighter. *The dress she wears for Ben's coronation appears to be adaptable. *In the prequel book, it is revealed she had a dream set near the Enchanted Lake, where Ben and Mal eventually go to on their date. *The junior novelization and prequel book reveal some additional details about her. **Her full name is Maleficent, like her mother. However, she is called Mal until she can prove to be just as evil as her mother. **She used to despise Evie. **She found her mother's staff locked in the ruins of the Forbidden Fortress. Unfortunately it was no longer working, so Maleficent charged her with stealing the Fairy Godmother's wand to recharge it. **She attended Dragon Hall (an evil high school), while on the Isle of the Lost. **Unlike Evie, Jay, and Carlos, she does not have an animal familiar. The reason for this is that she was not invited to Evie's sixth birthday party, where the other children received their familiars as gifts. **She had a human father, who is regarded by Maleficent with contempt. **She steals from the Slop Shop every day since her mother never has food in the kitchen. **In the 'Disney Descendants Yearbook'. It's revealed that her "Secret Wish" is to learn how to swim and that her "Not-so-secret Wish" is to have a different middle name. **It's also revealed that she wants to be an artist when she grows up. **Her favorite class is 'Remedial Goodness 101', stating that she just thinks of what her mom would do and pick the opposite. **Her 'Go-To Object at the museum is her mother's magic spinning wheel. Stating that even though it's boring-looking, it's spooky that a few pieces of wood could put someone to sleep for a hundred years. **In the scene when the gang makes cookies many questions are asked about how it worked when they added a extra ingredients. *In early concept designs of her outfits, she was originally meant to have short hair. *In Descendants: Wicked World she is shown to be a skilled painter, as she has painted Audrey in her mother's signature dress. *In 2016, Jolly Roger (Amusement Rides LTD) made her as a coin operated trolley ride. On the very old version, she features 2 rectangle shaped buttons. The green one reads "START", which starts the trolley ride, and a red button for sound effects and phrases. Later, another version was made, which had circular buttons. The sounds on Mal are "All ABOARD!" ''ding ding! (the sound of a trolley), "Toot toot!" and her popular catchphrase "We are not our parents!" Category:Characters Category:Main Characters Category:Female Characters Category:New generation Category:Villain kids Category:Daughters Category:Fairies Category:Magic Users Category:Cheerleaders Category:Auradon Students Category:Descendants: Wicked World Characters Category:Descendants 2 Characters Category:Descendants Characters Category:Isle of the Lost Characters